Comprehensive Approach to Child Abuse

Integrale aanpak kindermishandeling

This research group conducts practice-oriented scientific research to develop effective, useful, innovative and integrated approaches to tackling child abuse. In the Netherlands, around 119,000 children grow up in unsafe home environments – that means, on average, there is one child in every classroom affected by this.

Within the broad theme of child abuse, the research line focuses in particular on: 

Primary prevention

  • Making the dark sides of parenting a subject for discussion
  • Breaking the taboo around child abuse
  • Strengthening all parents in their parenting

Secondary prevention

  • Strengthening vulnerable parents in their parenting (reducing risks, strengthening protective factors);
  • Early detection and tailor-made options. 

Strengthening the actions and attitude of the (prospective) professional

  • Working with the reporting code
  • Talk about (suspected) child abuse
  • Working together and learning from each other

Using experiential expertise

  • Paying attention to the perspective of all parties involved (perpetrator/victim/bystander).
  • Using experiential knowledge in addition to academic and practical knowledge. 

Research, education & practice

Professor